


A Snowy Ball

by StariWolfe



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Awkwardness, Dancing, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, General Shenanigans, General hijinks, Hurt/Comfort, No Spoilers, Pre-Relationship, Snowball Fight, Stargazing, characters are bad at behaving at a fancy party, fancy party, no real spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:20:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28033791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StariWolfe/pseuds/StariWolfe
Summary: The Alliance is holding a fancy ball for purposes of increasing diplomatic relations between them, and naturally, the Scions are invited.However, three Scions, in particular, have to behave and play it cool around their love interests while at the party.Can they do it?
Relationships: Aymeric de Borel/Warrior of Light, Hien Rijin/Warrior of Light, Warrior of Light/Estinien Wyrmblood, Warrior of Light/Thancred Waters
Kudos: 13





	1. Prologue: The gossip

“Alright, mates, place your bets now! Who’s gonna make some kinda stupid scene at this whole party shindig? I’m gonna say...Estinien!”

“Vesper! That’s so mean!.. You’re probably right, though.”

“...Y’know, being totally honest with ya, Lemon, I’d’ve thought you’d defend your lover a little longer than that.”

“I think Lemon knows when she’s beat, Vesper. We’ve all seen the choices that the two of them have made. By the way, my bet is on you.”

“Them’s fightin’ words, Nocte.”

“Bring it.”

Vesper sighed, knowing her friend could probably read her mind and see all of the adventures she was thinking of to keep her entertained during this outing. She, Lemon, Nocte, Ellywen, and the rest of the Scions were on the way to a ball organized by the Eorzean Alliance leaders. From what their invitations stated, the ball was being held at Camp Dragonhead to strengthen the bonds between all of the nations and factions that formed the Alliance, and there would be food, music, and maybe even dancing to be had.

But, being that it was mostly a diplomatic endeavor, Vesper just _knew_ she’d be bored to tears, as well as the rest of the Scions. Except maybe Alphinaud.

“I don’t plan on causin’ any scene, at least where others can see. I’ve no intention of messin’ with any of our ties to the factions or cities.” She lifted her hands and held them behind her head, feeling the fabrics of her fancy waistcoat and dress shirt shift. “But this is gonna be one incredibly dull night. I wonder if I could bow out early?”

“Would you really miss this opportunity to talk to Aymeric and say it’s for ‘diplomacy’ instead of flirting?” Ellywen stated without missing a beat, causing Vesper to sputter for a moment. “I’d thought you’d be all over that to spend some time with him that _isn’t_ one of you getting rescued or treated for wounds or just being secretive.”

“You’re a fine one to talk. What about you and Hien? Don’t act like you two aren’t gonna make lovey-dovey eyes at each other all night.” It was Ellywen’s turn to be taken aback. “Besides, with this being mostly for diplomacy, Aymeric’ll probably be busy all night talkin’ t’ the other Alliance leaders. I feel like I’ll be lucky to get a word in.”

“You say that like Hien is actually interested in me like that,” Ellywen whispered. Before Vesper could say ‘yes he does you dumbarse,’ Thancred walked up behind the four and fell into step with them.

“You lot are being very talkative. What secrets are being shared? Juicy gossip, I hope. I know a few people who’d love to hear it.”

“Namely you, eh?” Vesper gently elbowed him in the ribs. “For your information, we’re havin’ a rousin’ conversation about our sex lives, and if you want in, you have to share too.” Nocte, Lemon, and Elly immediately went red in the face before trying and failing, to change the subject.

“Oh, really? Nocte, I didn’t think you’d be so open about our love!” He said, tilting his head at Nocte. The viera hid her reddening face as he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. 

“ _ANYWAY_! Thancred, who do you think is the best dressed out of all of us?” Lemon shouted, clearly wanting to be done with the talk of romance. Vesper figured she knew that she’d get teased about Estinien if the topic stayed the same for much longer.

“Well, that’s a hefty question, isn’t it?” Thancred took a moment to look at all of the Scions, from the men in their suits to the ladies in dress shirts and pants to dresses. His eyes then rolled over the group he was walking with, taking in Ellywen’s deep green off-the-shoulder dress, Vesper’s red waistcoat and black dress pants, Lemon’s black and gold floral dress, and Nocte’s brilliant red backless dress. “But I’m far too biased for a proper answer; Nocte is the only one I have eyes for.”

“Will you two get a room, already?” Vesper said playfully. She was glad the two of them had gotten together; they were great for each other. “Anyway, looks like we’re almost there. Remember, mates, no trouble-causin’. Mostly.” She couldn’t help but snicker at Nocte’s stern look.

“In that case, I’m gonna go find Est. Have fun, everyone!” Lemon bolted off to who-knew-where, eager to find her dragoon lover. Thancred and Nocte followed suit, most likely going to spend some time watching the snowfall or some other romantic shite. Elly looked like she was going to try to hide, before shaking her head and heading for the food table. Vesper made a mental note to keep an eye on her through the night; it should prove interesting.

“Hey, Vess.” Vesper looked over her shoulder to see Alisaie had sidled up to her as the other Scions had gone ahead. “You brought your Triple Triad cards, right?”

“Oh, of course. This was gonna be way too borin’ if I didn’t.”


	2. A Citrus and Her Dragoon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lemon and Estinien enjoy the ball together. Can they behave without causing a scene?

Lemon was having a bit of trouble finding her love.

While Camp Dragonhead was fairly small, she’d looked just about everywhere that Estinien could be with no luck in finding him. The food table? Not there. The wine? Nope. Every high spot where he could look around the area and brood? Surprisingly, no sign of him. She was near the aetheryte now, wondering where in Eorzea he could be. He said he would be here, so where-

A strong arm encircled her waist whilst a hand covered her eyes. She didn’t have time to think or speak before someone was whispering in her ear.

“Guess who.”

Lemon couldn’t help the smile that sprang to her face as she tried to turn in his arms.

“Oh, no you don’t. You have to guess who I am, first.” 

“Estinien! You’re Est, now hug me!” She giggled as he finally removed his hand from her eyes and loosened his grip on her waist, allowing her to turn and return his hug. She buried her face in his chest as he squeezed her gently.

“I’m glad to see you, too. This has been excruciatingly dull from the moment it started.” He released her and straightened his dress shirt, looking very out of place and even more out of his comfort zone. “Now that you’re here, we can enjoy ourselves a bit more.”

“Indeed! Gosh, what should we do first? There’s…” After looking around, she realized that this being a ball mostly for diplomacy, there wasn’t too much that tickled her fancy. “There’s...not much. Is there anything you’d like to do?”

“Now you see why I’ve been bored out of my mind.”

“Yes, yes I do. Uh…” As the two stood in the snow trying to think of how to entertain themselves, the musicians started playing a lively tune. Many of the attendees started making their way to the clearing in the middle of the camp, using it as a makeshift dance floor. 

Lemon turned to Estinien with a twinkle in her eye.

“What about dancing? I’ve not danced in far too long.” She couldn’t keep the smirk off of her face when Estinien looked nearly horrified.

“Lemon, I love you, you know I love you, but if we go dancing, your toes will be feeling it in the morning. Are you _sure_?”

“Bold of you to assume I’m not wearing steel-toed boots.”

“... Alright, if you insist.” He grabbed her hand and walked to the dance area. Lemon thought he looked a bit more excited than he let on.

The two stayed near the outer edges of the clearing, not in anyone’s way or where they could easily grab attention. Estinien wasn’t completely wrong; he wasn’t the best dancer, and Lemon was thankful she’d thought to bring her sturdy boots. As they danced, however, she noticed he was just having a bit of trouble keeping to the rhythm of the song. She started giving him tips on timing, and soon enough, the two were dancing smooth as silk.

“See? You’re doing just fine now! My teaching helped you!” Lemon was wearing a shite-eating grin, imagining all the teasing she could do with her newfound teaching skills. In response, Estinien raised an eyebrow before lifting her off the ground and spinning her around, setting her back down after she started laughing uncontrollably.

“That you did, but the pupil seems to have surpassed the master. Who’s the better dancer now, eh?” It was Estinien’s turn to wear a shite-eating grin, as he spun her around and brought her back to his arms.

“Is that a challenge?” Lemon was always ready for a challenge, even with her lover. She started to formulate a plan to assert her dominance over dancing but Estinien interrupted her train of thought.

“Nay, not for dancing. We’d be thrown out of this gathering sooner than we could blink.” He took a finger and booped her gently on the nose. “A different challenge, however, came to my mind.” 

“Oh?”

“I take you up to one of the highest points of the fortress here, away from everyone else, and we see who can count the most stars or constellations.”

“Alright, it’s on! What’s the prize for the winner?”

“We’ll figure that out later.” Before making further conversation, Estinien swept her into his arms and began jumping up to the higher points of the fortress, eventually settling on one of the spired roofs.

“Alright, let’s start with constellations and prominent stars! I see three already!” Lemon immediately started counting constellations and stars in the sky.

“Lovely. I see four.”

“Wha-? Alright, then, I’ll work even harder! Vesper has been teaching me astrology, and I’m gonna put it to good use!”

Estinien knew she was right, and that he’d probably lose to her. If he played fairly, that is.

“Alright, how about ten? Have you found ten?”

“Eleven, actually.”

Lemon let out a frustrated groan and continued her counting. Estinien wondered if she’d figure out that he wasn’t even looking at the stars and was just adding one number onto her count every time she asked. He didn’t mind, though. Watching her gaze excitedly at the starlit sky was more adorable than he imagined it’d be, and he was going to watch her for as long as he could. He’d count the stars in her eyes instead of the sky any day.

“Alright, twenty! How about that?” Lemon was so confident in herself this time. She stuck her tongue out at him in a premature victory celebration.

“Twenty-one.”

“How in the- wait! Are you just adding one to whatever I count?”

“Took you long enough to figure that out, didn’t it?”

“Why you-”

“Hey Lem, there’s one over there that you missed.” He pointed off towards the side of him that was opposite of Lemon.

“What? Where-” As she moved her head to look off into the distance, Estinien took advantage of their close proximity to swoop in and steal a kiss. Before she could even close her eyes and enjoy it, the pressure of his lips went away as he pulled back.

“You piece of-! That’s not fair! Let me enjoy it, at least!” Estinien laughed as he pulled her closer, muffling her protests against his shirt.

“Tell you what. Once this is over and there aren’t any prying eyes, I’ll kiss you as much as you want. You won the contest after all.” She smiled against his chest as she felt him press a kiss to her forehead.

“Oh, alright, you bloody cheater. You’re lucky you’re so convincing.”


	3. Awkward Conversations and Anxious Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ellywen is trying to steer clear of most of the people at the ball, including Hien, but can she keep herself calm when he finds her?

Ellywen wanted to be anywhere but this gathering.

She’d parked herself at a table somewhat far from the banquet after fixing herself a small plate of food and hightailing it away from there. She wanted to be as inconspicuous as possible. Right here, away from the eyes of most of the attendees, she felt safest. Not that she felt safe in the first place; there were far too many prominent figures here, and one wrong move could jeopardize their relations with everyone.

And The Twelve forbid if she actually ran into Hien.

She’d love to see him, don’t get her wrong! She couldn’t deny how she felt about him. And they were super close. When she had gone with Vesper, Lemon, and the other Scions to the Far East to help Doma, the two had almost instantly hit it off. They shared a mutual love of silly jokes and stories, and his heart of gold and passion for his country was inspiring to her.

Not to mention, he was stupidly attractive, too. Those muscles and that damn smile...seriously, it should be _illegal_ to be that attractive.

How many nights had they spent around the campfire with the others, making dumb jokes and telling old stories and getting absolutely smashed? Gods, they’d gotten seriously drunk more times than she cared to think about, and that’s saying something since her usual drinking buddies happen to include Vesper and Nocte, both of which could drink the two of them under a table. They’d definitely passed out in each others’ rooms before and had been subjected to myriads of questions upon their discovery. But through it all, Hien and Elly grew closer and closer, and very few could come between them, save the distance between Mor Dhona and the Far East.

However, the letter she sent him before she went to the First might have changed all that.

After what happened with the three Warriors of Light and Zenos-Elidibus, after Hien fought his hardest to hold off the Ascian-possessed Garlean, and after learning about what she might face in the First… in a whole new world… she made the decision to tell him how she felt. She couldn’t tell him face to face, there wasn’t time (not to mention, she’d probably explode if she told him face to face). The First was on its last days, if not borrowed time, and the three had to move quickly. So she wrote a letter to him and sent it off before the trio walked through the trench. If anything happened to her, if she didn’t make it back...she wanted him to know how much he meant to her.

And now here she was. Very much alive, and very much an anxious mess.

Honestly, she was almost upset she didn’t die in the First. She wouldn’t be having to deal with this stupid little diplomacy party, or having to face the music on her feelings, or possibly ruining a rock-solid friendship, or ruining a relation for the Scions, or-

“Elly! There you are, I’ve been looking all over for you!” She froze at the all-too-familiar voice. She looked up to see Hien across from her, that Twelve-damned smile and all. “Is this seat taken? I finally escaped talking to some rather… overbearing Ishgardian nobles, and would like to spend some time with a dear friend.” Ellywen took a little longer than she liked to respond, but she managed a smile and a nod. She felt her heart flutter as his smile widened and he took a seat next to her at the table. Damn these stupid feeling things.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to hide from you!” _Lies_ , she felt the annoying voice in her head say. “I don’t deal well with gatherings like this unless it’s on the battlefield. Too many people.” That part was true. She wasn’t necessarily avoiding Hien; she didn’t like big groups of people like this. The only Warrior who wasn’t like this in big gatherings was Lemon, and even then Lemon could take it or leave it.

“You and me both. I’d nearly say I’ve had enough people eyeing me tonight to last me the rest of my days. Though, maybe some people eyeing me isn’t so bad.” Elly nearly missed the small glance he threw her way at that last line; she felt like her face was tomato-red from her scalp to her collarbone.

“O-Oh! I know what you mean, I-I hate it when people look at me like that! Wait, no, that’s not what I meant, I-” She hung her head with a sigh as she gave up on trying to salvage that sentence. “You know what I mean. It’s been...a long few weeks.”

“Don’t worry, I know what you mean. We know each other well enough, right?” Hien looked like he was trying not to laugh at her little outburst. “Actually, there’s something I’d like to ask you about…”

Oh. Oh, Gods. Oh no. She couldn’t do this.

“O-Oh really? A-and what m-might that b-be?” Oh, by the Twelve, please don't let it be about the letter. Did he read it? Did he think she was just some silly little girl? Did he even get it? Did he-

“Hey, hey, easy now! There’s no need to be nervous, promise!” He put an arm around her shoulders to steady her and put his other hand on the shoulder closest to him when she nearly jumped out of her skin at the contact. “With the way you're acting, the weeks must have been even harder than I thought. Was it that difficult in the First? I’d read the reports, but I know there must have been much and more that wasn’t included.”

“Y-Yeah, you could say that.” Having her anxiety pool while thinking about the fate of her letter while she was in the First didn’t help things, so yes it was a bit more difficult than the reports said.

“... well, that’s another thing I wanted to ask you about, actually. The first thing can wait a bit if you’re this jumpy.” He removed the hand on her shoulder while keeping the arm around her back. “What was it like? The First, I mean. It’s rare and rarer still for someone to go to a wholly different star, so if you wouldn’t mind sharing…” 

Oh. Okay. Okay, she could deal with that. Maybe it’d get her mind off of the letter.

“Oh! Right, right, I can do that. That’s not hard. So, it’s what I would call the _First_ of its kind…”

And with that joke, the two were back to how they were before she’d left for Norvrandt. She felt her anxiety all but melt away as he listened intently to her stories, about the people of the first, the beast tribes, the cultures, the landscapes...there was so much that she could talk about, and so much of it was things that she wouldn’t dare tell to most people.

But Hien didn’t feel like people. He barely felt like a person around her. He just felt like Hien.

And so they talked. She answered his questions as best she could, while he would do his best to comfort her if she recalled a bad memory (of which there were plenty). She wasn’t sure how long they talked, but the party wasn’t dying down even a little as she finished. 

“Incredible… to think a place like that exists! By the kami, I wish I would’ve been able to see it with you all.” Hien’s eyes were nearly sparkling in the candlelight. He looked like a child in a sweetshop.

“If we ever figure out how to regularly traverse time and space, I’ll take you to all of my favorite spots.” She adjusted her position and hissed with displeasure at the lack of feeling in her legs. “I feel like we’ve been sitting here too long, my legs have fallen asleep. I need to get up and walk around a bit.”

“Would it be impolite of me to ask to join you? It’s perfectly fine if not, of course, but between you and me,” he slid a little closer to her to make sure no one else could hear, “I saw some folks eyeing you in the same way others were eyeing me, and I’d rather you not be alone with them around. I’m aware you can take care of yourself, but-”

“I’d like that! I-uh, I mean, yes of course!” Ellywen nearly shouted as she bolted up off of the chair and had to correct herself; she really needed Vesper to teach her how to control her volume. As she stood, she nearly stumbled to the ground, but Hien caught her and steadied her before she hit the floor.

“Saved your life.”

“Are we keeping a tally now?”

“If we are, I think I’m in the lead.”

“No, we’re tied. I saved you from Zenos, remember?” The two continued their banter as they made their way out to the clearing of the camp. Elly nearly began to make her way towards the snack table before Hien grabbed her by the arm, stopping her in her tracks.

“Hey, Elly, what say you to walking out of the camp for a bit? I’m sure Yugiri and Alphinaud have things under control for diplomatic talks, and both of us are sick of people. It’d be a moment to refresh ourselves before having to deal with more people.” She couldn’t help the blush that rose to her cheeks.

“O-Oh, sure! It would be nice to get away for a bit.” She stammered a bit as he offered her his arm and she looped hers through it, making their way south out of the camp.


	4. Comfort in the Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vesper gets terribly bored and wanders away from camp, alone with her thoughts. She doesn't realize she's been followed.

Vesper was fucking bored. 

She and Alisaie had played Triple Triad for a good portion of the night, but then Alphinaud had roped his sister into some diplomatic talk with a bunch of merchants from various cities. She’d then taken to people watching all of the folks at the ball, but that had soon grown dull as most of the folks were dressed in similar fancy-ball garb. She thought to go and see what her friends were doing, but Thancred, Nocte, Estinien, and Lemon were all occupied with each other, respectively, and Hien and Elly would soon be in the same boat since she gave Hien directions on where to find her black mage friend mere minutes ago. And Altair and G’raha (the two she would have hung out with) had decided to spend the night in each other’s company instead of attending the party.

And, as expected, Aymeric was surrounded by people wanting to talk to him.

Vesper had made her way south of Camp Dragonhead, away from the masses and away from the noise. She had too much on her mind to be here, anyway. Being away from the camp and bored made her remember all of the recent events that had been going on, and being alone with her thoughts made it hard to focus on anything else. There were still so many things that had to be done, and every time something was solved, three more things seemed to pop up that had to be dealt with. 

She was tired. She was so tired.

The rogue decided to take this rare moment of quiet to calm down her overactive mind. She leaned back against a tree, staring up at its snow-covered branches as she gathered her thoughts. Like it or not, now was a waiting game, and she was terribly impatient. Memories came flooding back of the things that happened whenever she didn’t bide her time. Even if all she wanted to do right now was run to the nearest problem and shoot it right in the-

She shook herself to calm her down. A frustrated grunt escaped her mouth as she wrapped her arms around herself. This moment of quiet was beginning to become much less tranquil. She had to get her thoughts under control.

She let her arms fall as she focused on the feeling of the frost on her skin, focused on her breath that was frozen in the air. The cold air burnt her lungs as she took a deep breath, and her eyes followed the snowflakes as they fell to the ground. The tree’s branches swayed in the breeze as she watched, and she attuned her ears to the sound of quietly crunching snow-

Wait. Snow doesn’t crunch unless someone is walking in it. Footsteps?

Vesper was instantly on her guard. If this was an enemy and they got this far past all of the security patrols, they might not have trouble getting into the ball and causing trouble. It would also be bad if she got caught alone out here, combat prowess or not. She was always thankful for the powers of the Echo, and hers in particular granted her the ability to sense people nearby and identify them. She cast out her senses to the direction that the footsteps were coming from, and-

“Vesper? What are you doing all the way out here?”

-And the voice identified the new presence as Aymeric before her Echo could.

“I could ask you th’ same question, mate.” She felt her guard falling as she turned herself to watch him approach. It was definitely Aymeric and not a glamour, so she felt a bit safer in his presence. “In fact, it makes a bit more sense for me t’ be out here instead of you, Mr. Important-Ishgard-Man.” She smirked as she saw him chuckle. He needed a laugh every now and then.

“I suppose that makes sense.” He stopped beside her, close enough for her to feel the warmth from his body heat, and leaned up against the tree as well. “Lucia managed to get most of the people to pay attention to her long enough for me to slip away. Those who didn’t fall for her trick I managed to lose in the crowd. As for why I’m here,” he glanced down at her fondly, “I’d wanted to speak with you all evening when I spied you making your way out of the fortress. I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“Aw, bless your heart, mate, I appreciate it more than y’ know.” She gently elbowed him in the ribs, but apparently, that startled him a bit because he jumped slightly. Or maybe he was ticklish? She’d find out later. “And don’t you worry your handsome head, I’m right as rain.”

She didn’t miss the raise of his eyebrow; how much did he see?

“Really? Then what were you doing when you shook yourself and wrapped your arms around yourself?”

Fuck.

“Oh bloody hells, ya saw that, did ya?” She turned her face skyward again and removed the cover from her left eye. It was night now; no reason to keep it on, and the snow felt good. “Well, alright, I’m not alright. But I will be. I always am, remember?”

“I see. You do have an amazing record for staying alive.” She felt a faint smile come to her lips. She was good at that if nothing else.

“Aye, so no worries about me, yeah? I’ll be fine, mate.” Vesper felt a surge of pride at her ability to turn the conversation away from her troubles; she didn’t want him to have to worry about her.

“I know you will be. But, with that being said, I want you to realize something.” Aymeric turned his gaze to the sky this time. “Right now, the only people nearby are the two of us. No one else would hear you if you decided to talk about your troubles, Vesper. You know the burdens aren’t yours alone to bear, and it’s fine to not be fine.” Vesper couldn’t stop her eyes from widening at his statement. Alright, sure, there wasn’t anyone else around besides the two of them, but what did that have to do with… anything…

“I… I know you’re right. You’re completely right, and I’m not fine at all. It’s just,” she couldn’t help herself from sounding irritated, and she hoped he didn’t think her ire was directed at him. “There’s still so much to do. We do one amazin’ thing and ten more problems pop up around us. For every foe I take down, another one that’s even crazier and more bloodthirsty than the last replaces them. For every life saved, how many more are lost? We work and we work and we work, and yet...and yet-” She couldn’t help herself. She slid down the base of the trunk until she was sitting on the ground, an arm propped up on one knee as she rested her head in her elbow. “-and yet sometimes it amounts to almost nothin’. These last few weeks we’ve done things that no one thought possible, but now horrible problems that no one thought possible are comin’ around. I won’t stop fightin’, but I just-” she sighed. “I’m tired, Aymeric. I’m tired. I’m so bloody tired.”

She felt tears pricking at her eyes, but held them back. Not now. She’d deal with that later. She needed to deal with the fact that she broke her facade and dumped all of that onto Aymeric. Twelve knows he didn’t need it; he had enough to deal with-

Vesper let out a gentle gasp as she felt him slide down the trunk as well, eventually sitting beside her on the ground. She didn’t look at him, she couldn’t meet his eyes, but he definitely felt closer than he was when they were standing.

“I know, Vesper, I know. And you have every reason to be tired. You’ve been working so hard, so diligently, and your efforts have finally borne fruit. Whether or not you believe so, I think you’ve done an amazing job, and I don’t think I could admire you more.” He moved a little closer to her and put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her nearer to his warmth. “You’ve done things most people, myself included, could never even begin to dream of. You’ve told me before that I can’t save everyone, and you’d do well to remember that. You aren’t alone, Vesper.”

The tears fell down her cheeks before she could stop them. The things he said were true, and she knew they were true. She’d always known, and yet it took him saying that to her for them to finally hit home. Never had she been so glad that the two were so close and also alone at the moment, for she decided to gather her bravery and scoot even closer to him. He tightened his hold on her as she got her emotions under control. Thank all the Twelve and whatever else was up there that it was him and not someone else. She knew she felt romantic towards the man, but this just solidified it.

She was also really glad she got her tears under control before she looked at him again. If she’d been red-faced and puffy-eyed, the sheer embarrassment would have killed her.

“Thank ya, Aymeric. If my tears are anythin’ to go by, I needed that.” Vesper brought her head up and shook herself a bit to rid herself of the last feelings of despair that she’d harbored. “I’ll be honest, I’m a bit ashamed that it took ya tellin’ me that for me to actually take it t’ heart.”

“There’s no reason to be ashamed of that, and I hope you take that to heart as well, my friend.” He hadn’t moved his arm from around her yet, not that Vesper was complaining. She’d let him hold her as much as he wanted. “You tend to take on far too much yourself, and sometimes you need to be reminded that it’s a bad idea to hold all that in.”

“Your right. You’re very right. I make no promises, but I’ll do my best to be better ‘bout it.”

“I appreciate it. I-” His head jerked up before he could say anything else, looking towards the direction of the camp. “Say, can you hear that?” Her eyes closed as she tried to listen to whatever he could hear. Faintly, music from the ball drifted to their spot in the snow. A soft song to relax to and to slow-dance to.

“Music. I know this song, too. I usually sing it or play it inna higher key, though.” It was one of her favorites, being honest. Disappointment briefly came over her as Aymeric removed his arm and stood. But it didn’t last, for Aymeric bowed to her and offered her his hand.

“Would you care to dance, milady? No one would see us this far from Dragonhead.” She was taken by surprise a bit. Naturally, she wanted to say yes, but it had been so long since she’d danced like this…

And then he tilted his head in a way that somehow made him even _more_ handsome, and she couldn’t bear to disappoint him.

“I’d love to. Just so you know,” she figured she might as well warn him now, as he took her hand and helped her get to her feet, “it’s been a long-arse since I’ve danced like this, at least since my last relationship. So, wary of your toes.”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine. You’ve trained as a dancer, yes?”

“Yeah, but that don’t mean anythin’! That’s way different from this.”

“You’ve nothing to worry about. I’ll help you along.” Oh bloody hell, she felt like she was blushing now. And then he smiled so softly at her, so she was _definitely_ blushing now. 

With that, Aymeric pulled her into his arms and placed his hands in the necessary positions for the type of dance that the song required. Their height difference (he was over a foot taller than her; he made her feel tiny) made it a bit difficult at first, but in no time they were dancing fluidly to the faint music. Vesper felt at least a little justified in her disclaimer; she was definitely rusty when it came to dancing like this, and the snow at their feet made it even harder to move around, though it was no less fun.

“You said you’ve not danced like this since your last relationship. How long has that been?” Vesper nearly jumped slightly at that question. She was not expecting questions about her love life tonight, at least not from Aymeric.

“Not even sure, honestly. The last person I dated was Altair, believe it or not, and I think it was two, maybe three years ago? Maybe more?” She tried to remember the exact timeline of when she dated her Miqo’te friend. “We ended off on friendly terms, obviously, as we’re still thick as thieves, but we weren’t quite right for each other, romantically speaking. We ended it mutually jus’ before the whole thing where we got framed, so before the lot of us came to Ishgard.”

“I see. So it has been a while, then.” He turned his eyes skyward for a moment. Vesper had no idea how he kept dancing without looking at his feet. “That’s...surprising, to say the least.”

“Oh?”

“I’d expect people of all genders to be lining up to try and court the beautiful and amazing Warrior of Light. It’s a wonder you’ve not had to beat them back with your bow or rapier.”

And now she _had_ to be red as a tomato.

“Aymeric, you’re a dear, but you can’t jus’ say things like that! Hells, I’m goin’ t’ be red for a bell at least…” Gods she wanted to kiss- _she meant wipe_ that shite-eating grin off of his face. “And even then, I’ve not had the best luck in romantic endeavors. Altair was the only good romantic experience, honestly.” Every other person she dated had ended badly, either due to abuse or other reasons.

“... I’m sorry to hear that, Vesper. You deserve better than that. Not better than Altair, I mean. You deserve a good relationship if you so desire it.” She laughed a bit. It really should be against the laws of life for this man to be so kind.

“Bless your heart, mate. I’d love one, being honest, but I’m worried about...recent developments. Not t’ mention, if the info of who I have my eye on gets out, it’d put one hell of a target on their back. I’m not sure I want t’ put anyone through that.” Twelve help her if anything happened to him. After losing Haurchefant, she wasn’t sure she could handle such a loss again.

“I understand that sentiment. I have the same quandary, not to mention the inlaid difficulties of the lord commander dating someone. But with that being said,” and the shite-eating grin was back. “Did you just say that you had your eye on someone?”

… Oh fucking hell in a handbasket.

The retort she’d thought of died on her lips as she froze at the question, and there was no way he didn’t notice. She couldn’t deny it now.

“Uh… maybe? I don’t remember what I said.”

“You very clearly did, judging from that reaction. I’m sorry friend, but you slipped up a bit there.” Alright, even though she wanted to kiss the smirk from his lips earlier, she very much wanted to punch it off this time. “So, if you don’t mind me asking, who does the great Warrior of Light have feelings for?” 

They’d stopped dancing now, and he was just watching her with anticipation. This was _not_ how she wanted her admission of love for him to go. She’d prefer a bit more time to prepare and maybe have a name change and fantasia ready to go.

“Oh Gods, u-uh, well… y’see… about that…” 

Before she could even get to the juicy part, a white sphere of snow came flying out of nowhere and hit Aymeric square on the back of his head.

Both of their combat instincts kicked in and they dropped to the ground in a crouch, hoping to avoid more enemy fire. But, upon realizing it was a snowball and not an arrow or a bullet, they slowly began to look around to find the source of the wayward snow.

“Best be on your guard, Lord Commander! You seem a bit distracted!” The two turned to see Estinien and Lemon not too far from where they were standing, both of them laughing uproariously. Vesper saw the twinkle in Aymeric’s eye, and let him stand while she stayed knelt to the ground, ready for what came next.

“Estinien? Attacking an innocent man while he’s dancing with a lady fair? I thought you were better than that!” He made a grand display of waving his arms dramatically. “You know better than anyone else that the only suitable punishment for such a horrendous act is…” Vesper sprang up at the end of his sentence to fling a snowball right back at Estinien, hitting him squarely on his face. “...a snowball to the face. There, we’re even.”

Estinien wiped the remaining snow off of his face while Lemon laughed even harder. He had a near-evil look on his face.

“Oh, but I don’t play to be even, Lord Commander. I play to _win_.” He ducked down to grab more snow and began balling it up. “Lemon, to arms! We’ll claim victory for ourselves today!”

But once again, two snowballs came flying out of nowhere and hit both of them. Not on their faces this time, but still on their bodies, which were poorly protected by their ball garb.

“You don’t mind if we join in, do you?” The group of four looked over to see Ellywen and Hien a few yalms away, Hien being the one who spoke. “I’ve not had much experience with snow, and I’d like to enjoy it while I’m here.”

“So would we!” Two snowballs hit Aymeric and Vesper again, this time coming from the newly arrived group of Thancred, Nocte, Alphinaud, Alisaie, and Urianger. “This whole thing has been quite dull, some excitement would do us all well, I think!” Thancred was immediately ready to begin throwing snowballs, and it looked like everyone else was ready to start sending them flying.

Vesper looked at Aymeric, a plan forming in her brain.

“Time to run?” Aymeric asked.

“Time to run!” The two booked it behind a rock sticking out of the ground as everyone else began to let snowballs fly. All hell had broken loose.


	5. Snowy Finale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A snowball fight starts, and it's anyone's game.

“Alright, Lady Aequorea, how should we proceed in this position?”

“I’d say stay here, for now, Lord Commander, and lob some snow when we need. If we so much as think of gettin’ out there, we’ll be a snowdrift before we can blink.” Vesper peeked over the rock that the two were hidden behind, quickly ducking back down as a snowball nearly got her. “Hells, it’s worse than I thought!”

“How so? How are our defenses?”

“Compared t’ Hien and Elly, piss poor, ‘scuse me language.” She peered over their rock again, spying the wall of ice that Ellywen had conjured up to act as a fort for herself and Hien. She felt a smile come to her face as she watched Elly giving orders to the King of Doma to try and secure victory.

“Our offense is lacking as well. Thancred, Nocte, and Alisaie are like whirlwinds in the snow.” She returned to her defensive position as he looked towards the Scion base. She didn’t have to look to know he was right-snowballs were being launched from that direction as if there was a magitek cannon built for such a purpose.

“And Alphinaud and Urianger?”

“They’re worse off than us. They’ve been pelted far more times than any of us, and they’ve taken to hiding in the trees yonder, throwing as they can.” Vesper couldn’t help but snicker. That sounded likely. She thought quickly, trying to think of how they could either build up a fort of snow or go on the offensive. 

Wait. What about-

“Hands in the air, you two!” The two started and turned around to find a smirking Lemon and Estinien, both wielding large snowballs. They must have sneaked behind them while the two were distracted. Slowly, the two caught unawares lifted their hands in the air, at the mercy of their captors.

“Est, what should we do? They look like they haven’t gotten hit by snow _nearly_ enough, don’t they?” Lemon was eyeing Vesper particularly; the rogue could only imagine the thoughts of revenge running through her mind.

“Why, you’re right my dear! They’re far too dry, mayhaps we could show them what it feels like? Although holding them up with snowballs is also quite entertaining.” Estinien was also eyeing Vesper in a way that made her regret all of the pranks she pulled on him. 

“Better to be held up at snowball point than gunpoint, to be fair.” Vesper quipped, thinking quickly. If she could distract them, she and Aymeric could get away…

“Have you two no honor? Take me and let Vesper go, she’s done no wrong today.” She knew Aymeric was trying to buy her some time. It’d be really nice if one of the others jumped behind them right now-

“Oh bloody hell, Urianger!” Vesper yelled, looking over the shoulders of her captors, and, just as she wished, they took the bait, ready to pound the elezen man with their snowballs. Vesper took the opportunity to steal Lemon’s snowballs and runoff, Aymeric heading in the opposite direction.

“What the-oh it is _on_.” The tone of Lemon’s voice instantly made Vesper regret her decisions, and she hightailed it towards a small group of trees as fast as her legs would take her, hoping that she’d escape the feral Au Ra-

Only to run straight into the waiting arms of Alphinaud and Urianger.

“Hello, my lady. Seemeth thou art running from one danger into another this evening.” Urianger looked like he was thoroughly enjoying this snowball war, unable to hide his smile as Alphinaud held fast to Vesper in a hugging fashion, pinning her arms to her sides. She thought it was adorable, really; he was still shorter than her, and him trying so hard to hold her still was endearing. The twins were like little siblings to her, in her eyes.

“I wouldn’t count you two as danger unless you’re gonna do somethin’ unsavory to me, which I doubt.” She could easily break free and run away if she wanted, but she didn’t want to hurt either of them, and that would require quite a bit of pain on their end.

“Ah, but we’re much more dangerous than usual in a match such as this! With our cunning, we’ll easily overcome the obstacles of whatever is thrown at us! Including snowballs.” Alphinaud was very clearly putting on an act, a very good one, but after seeing the two get absolutely destroyed by the other Scions, she couldn’t really take him seriously.

“I’m sure. So, what exactly are you two going t’ do t’ me? Not sure you’d succeed in a hostage situation when there’s nothin’ on the table, really.”

“I was just wondering that myself. I know you two wouldn’t hurt a lady who’s not even thrown a snowball this evening.” The three startled as they looked to find Aymeric not even a yalm away, holding two large snowballs. 

“T-That’s not true! I saw her pelt Estinien d-directly in the face!” Alphinaud was clearly intimidated by the appearance of the commander, loosening his hold on Vesper ever so slightly, though not enough to set her free.

“Stand up straighter when you say things like that, mate, it’ll be more believable.” She shifted a bit in his arms, seeing if she could break free. When he tightened his grip a bit, she turned back to Aymeric. “Get me out of this, wouldja?”

Before he could even begin to lift the snowballs to throw them, Alisaie, Thancred, and Nocte ran up behind all of them and began their assault. Alisaie spiked a huge snowball twice the size of her head onto Alphinaud, getting some on Vesper as well. Urianger was subjected to Nocte and Thancred’s onslaught, and in the confusion Vesper managed to twist free and run to Aymeric, both of them fleeing the skirmish. 

“Thanks for that, mate!”

“To be fair, I didn’t do much!” He grabbed her hand and led her back to a more guarded area to regroup. “That was the other Scions, which I honestly didn’t expect.”

“You and me both.” She leaned up against a tree for a quick moment of respite. “Ya think if we just hide here, they’ll just fight each other and leave us out of it?” Aymeric was about to answer until he looked past her.

“Well, since Hien and Elly are on their way towards us with large quantities of snowballs, I’d say no.”

“Oh, fuck me.”

“Careful, Vess, Aymeric might take that seriously!” She looked over to find Hien and Ellywen armed to the teeth, with snowballs more than likely created from Elly’s black magic.

“He’s more of a gentleman than that. Estinien might take that advice with Lemon, though, ask him.” She sighed as they got closer. “Is this another ‘hands in the air’ situation or are ya just gonna bury us in the snow?”

“Hmm...I might be tempted to spare you, but I’ll need...convincing.” Vesper had seen enough shite-eating grins tonight to last her a lifetime.

“Loverly. What do you want? Let’s get this over with, can’t be too terrible, yeah?”

“Oh really? What if I dare you two to kiss each other on the mouth in front of everyone?”

“If I kiss him, it’s gonna be away from your eyes and everyone else’s just for spite.”

“You’re no fun. Well Hien, how should they convince us?”

“The honorable thing to do would be to spare them, as they are unarmed and clearly tired of fighting. Normally, my lady, I'd let you choose their fate,” Hien bowed to her, causing Elly to turn as red as a Dalamud potato, “but right now, on the other hand…”

Oh no.

“Hey, Aymeric?” The commander’s apprehension was not hidden from the rogue. “Run.”

“Understood!” The two took off running as Hien and Ellywen opened fire, absolutely pummeling the two with as many snowballs as they could throw.

“What happened to honor, Hien!?” Vesper yelled as they ran away.

“‘Tis just a game, not a battle, my friend!” He’d learned way too much from Elly during their time together, Vesper decided. The fleeing pair slid behind another rock in the landscape, getting soaked from the snow and breathless from running.

“I… must say…” Aymeric gasped out between breaths, “ It… is unbecoming of… the Lord Commander… to be running away so much.” Vesper was too out of breath to do anything but nod. Those feelings were mutual; being a famed Warrior of Light and running away from mere snowballs was a bit of a blow to her pride. 

...She had an idea to have a bit of fun between the two of them.

“Oh, Gods, Aymeric, they got me good, mate!” Ostentatiously throwing her hand over her heart, she fell over onto his lap, dramatically throwing her other hand onto her forehead. “I think this is it fer me, my friend. Tell Thancred...I got more women than he did.” Ending her absolutely heart-rending final words, she did her best to let her head loll to the side, playing dead. And just as she’d hoped, Aymeric absolutely lost it with laughter.

“Oh no, my dear friend. Y-You...you mustn't leave me like this!” Holding her faux-lifeless body close to him, he tried to get his giggles under control. “I’d...I’d go to avenge your honor, but I fear you’ve died and left your corpse upon my legs!”

“Oh, you’re strong enough to toss me off, you’ll be fine!” She spoke quickly before playing dead again. Aymeric squeezed her close to him, still laughing a bit, before jerking his head up and looking towards the side of the rock. “I’d hate to stop grieving for you, but it seems Lemon and Estinien are on their way to pelt us with snow again.”

“... I’ve an idea. They only know that we’re here, they can’t see us, yeah?” He nodded. “Alright, mind acting as a decoy for a minute?”

“Sure thing.”

“Excellent. Don’t worry, I’ll come back for you!” With that, she turned herself invisible and walked off towards the trees, covering her tracks as she went.

Vesper was _determined_ to get at least one person with a snowball this evening, and she knew exactly who her target was.

Quickly as she could, she began to create a huge snowball, one that would require her to lift it with two hands. Finishing her task, she looked over to see that Estinien and Lemon had Aymeric at snowball point again. Thankfully, it looked like he was doing a wonderful job of stalling them. Now she just had to get her sneak attack to work. Their voices became clearer as she inched closer to her quarry.

“Ever a man of honor, Aymeric. You know if you tell us where your lady love is, we won’t hit you with snowballs.” Estinien was very clearly enjoying having the Lord commander at his mercy.

“Even if I believed you, I wouldn’t tell you!... And we aren’t lovers!”

“Yet!” Lemon piped up, and Vesper saw Aymeric blush as he put a hand over his face. That was interesting. “So, where did she pop off to? She was here a moment ago!”

“That’s for me to know. I’ll have you both know she nearly died from all of the snowballs that she took tonight.” 

“Oh, I’m sure.” Estinien was apparently not amused by this information; Vesper made a mental note to ask him about that. She’d rather he grieve for her properly.

She was almost close enough.

“Alright, Aymeric! We’re gonna count down from five, and either you tell us or you get pelted!” Lemon was way too excited to toss snowballs at Aymeric, Vesper thought. She must be getting out all of her energy that was pent up tonight by attacking the other snowball combatants.

“Fine by me.” Aymeric could probably see Vesper’s footprints in the snow, so she had to act quickly before they hit him or they noticed her.

They had reached two when Vesper was finally close enough to jump up and spike her huge snowball onto Estinien’s head, yelling out a victory cry. And before Lemon could retaliate, Aymeric had created a few snowballs and threw them at her, thoroughly defeating the two in an excellent display of strategy.

Afterward, however, Vesper’s energy was spent, and she decided to lay prone in the snow to cool herself down. A rustle next to her signaled someone had sat down next to her, and she turned her head to see Aymeric had taken a place beside her.

“You’re alright, yes? Nothing broken or bleeding from our brutal battle?” The way he was looking at her made her already warm face heat up even more than it already was.

“Aye, I’m alright. Just tired from such an onslaught.” She turned her head skyward again. “That was the most fun I’ve had in a while. I think I needed that.”

“Full glad am I that you had a good time.” The shuffle of his clothing told Vesper that he was looking back towards Dragonhead. “I think the ball has died down; it might be better for you and the Scions to head straight back to Revenant’s Toll.” 

“Aw, and here I was looking forward to spendin’ the night at your place.” A smirk of satisfaction came to her lips as she watched him grow a beautiful shade of red. “Relax, I was thinkin’ the same thing. You still owe me a tour of your wine cellar, by the way.”

“Indeed I do.” He chuckled as Vesper pulled herself up into a sitting position. One of his hands went to her shoulder to steady her as she looked over to where the others were congregating. Estinien had gotten up from where Vesper had knocked him to the ground with Lemon helping him clear snow out of his hair. Ellywen and Hien were having a conversation not too far from where they had approached Vesper and Aymeric, and they seemed to be pretty smug about their contribution to the snowball war. The other Scions were gathering together to head back to Revenant’s Toll, with Alisaie and Thancred making up a system to calculate who had won the snowball fight. Alphinaud and Urianger stood slightly away from the others, absolutely drenched in snow. Whatever the ‘official’ results, those two had definitely lost.

“Y’know, I may not’ve won this fight, but damn if it wasn’t a riot of a time.” Aymeric got to his feet and offered her a hand to help pull herself off the ground. “I think we all needed that; it’s been far too gloomy lately.”

“I can agree with that. It was also much more interesting than the entirety of the party.”

“Aye. As much as I want to spend more time with you, I think you’d best go find Lucia before she’s hounded with questions about where you are.”

“Indeed. Promise me you’ll be safe on the way back, and in whatever battles that may happen?”

“I’ll do my best. I refuse to die until things are better here, and that’s a bloody threat.”

“That’s not a threat for me, I’d much prefer you to stay around longer. By the way,” he leaned down to get a bit closer to her face. “I really enjoyed our dance, and I’m still curious about your secret love.”

Vesper absolutely short-circuited.

“O-Oh, I enjoyed the d-dancin’, t-too.” Oh hells, her face was heating up again. “A-As for the secret, you’ll have to figure that out yaself.”

“Oh, I shall.” He grasped her hand before beginning to head in the direction of Camp Dragonhead to find Lucia and the others who had joined them. “Be safe, my friend.”

“I will. You too, Aymeric.”

She watched him until he was completely gone from her field of view, and then headed back to where the Scions were beginning on the way back to Mor Dhona.

“So, what did you lot decide about the results of the snow war?” Lemon and Ellywen started as she fell into step with them, the two seemingly wrapped up in their own thoughts.

“We can’t decide between Thancred, Nocte, and Alisaie or Elly and Hien.” Lemon began after she realized it was Vesper. “Elly and Hien definitely hit the most people with snowballs, but it also might be cheating because of her magic.”

“Which I think is silly!” Ellywen cried in indignation.

“It’s a distinct advantage!” Lemon was adamant in her opinion.

“Oh, I won’t hear the end of this for months.” Vesper regretted even starting this topic, so she decided to change it. “Another thought: how did you two enjoy the party?”

“It was nerve-wracking,” Ellywen said, looking to her feet as they walked.

“It was lovely! Estinien and I danced and stargazed and-”

“And made out, probably.” Vesper loved teasing Lemon, and her blood-red face was incredibly satisfying.

“No! I mean, yes, but-”

“I’ve heard enough, who knows what else you did while folks weren’t lookin’.” It was Lemon’s turn to short circuit, unable to speak as she nearly had steam coming out of her ears. “Anywho, I’m ready to fall asleep for about two days or so, that was enough social interaction for the year.”

“Agreed.” Her companions spoke up in unison, all moving even quicker to their tavern home. Ellywen went on ahead of Vesper and Lemon, clearly ready to be done with the talk of romance, leaving the two alone for a moment.

“Think somethin’ happened between her and Hien? She seems even more blushy than usual.”

“Don’t know, though I think he told her he got her letter? I doubt she absorbed that information though.”

“Aye, you’re probably right. Wonder if we’ll have to do some matchmakin’.”

“I’m ready when you are, just be prepared to have some matchmaking of your own done to you!” Vesper let out a heavy sigh as the two ran to catch up to the other Scions, ready to be done with this evening.


End file.
